Wishing
by soramegami
Summary: He only made two simple wishes: to no longer be cursed and to have someone of his own to love. But Yuki never imagined it would turn out like this! YukiOC HatusharuOC KyoTohru R&R please!


_A/N: Hello all!! Sora-san here, and bringing you the new-and-improved version of one of my older stories, Wishing for a Better Life. I didn't like the title I gave this originally because it was too long so I changed it to simply Wishing. This is a third person story and time line wise starts a while after the anime ends--though spoilers for it are only mentioned, not detailed. I also took a bit of my own curve with where we see Kyo and Tohru at the start, but this doesn't mean we'll never see them again!! I am a firm Kyo/Tohru fan so fluff for them will be present in some way, shape or form. LOVE WILL FIND A WAY!! Okay, and now if you don't think I'm insanely weird and want to run away, here is the first chapter._

_Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket. I do not own the Chinese Zodiac. I do not own Onigiri. I do, however, own Reina and Miharu so please don't use them without my permission. Thanks._

**Wishing**

**Chapter 1: The Three-Month Trial Begins!!**

"Are you sure this is ok Shigure? With Yuki I mean."

Shigure, a tall man with short black hair and soft brown eyes, stared at the person who'd said this in surprise. "Why Kyo…I never thought I'd hear you say something like that! Are you actually worried about Yuki?" Shigure teased, sing-songing the last bit.

"Forget I asked!!" The teen replied, crossing his arms in front of his chest and turning his amber, cat-shaped eyes away from Shigure stubbornly.

Shigure placed a hand on Kyo's orange-topped head affectionately. "Come now, Kyo, you know I'm only joking! Besides…this is the last time you'll ever see him. It's natural to be a little worried."

"I'm not worried." Kyo grumbled, lying through his teeth. In fact, he _was_ worried…but not about never seeing Yuki again. He was more worried about the brunette, bubble-headed girl standing beside him; her bright blue eyes constantly darting up to Yuki's bedroom window. Was she really ok with this? Going off to live alone…with him? "Tohru…" Kyo whispered, hoping to catch her attention.

Tohru turned to him, a nervous smile on her face. "Yes Kyo?" She asked rather a bit more loudly than he'd have liked. After all…a certain nosy dog was standing right next to them.

"Oh, is there some private conversation going on here that I don't know about?" Shigure smirked, glancing from Tohru to Kyo and back again.

"N-n-n-n-no! Nothing like that Shigure-san! We were just um…" Tohru stammered, turning red and staring at the ground.

(That's so like her) Kyo thought, not able to suppress a grin at how cute she was acting.

"Now, now, enough of this, off you go!"

"But I—" Tohru began to protest, but Shigure was already ushering her towards a small yellow taxi.

Kyo took one last glance up at the house. The house they'd never see again. (Why is Akito sending us away anyhow? I broke the curse already dammit, I should be able to do whatever I want!) Waving away Shigure's ushering hand, Kyo helped Tohru into the car himself, and then climbed in beside her.

"Bye you too, have a nice trip!" Shigure told them, waving them off as if he'd see them in only a day or two.

"Shigure-san, thank you so much for everything!" Tohru called out the taxi window, "Tell Yuki-kun I said thank you to him too!"

"I will!" Shigure agreed, still waving as the taxi drove them away. His shallow grin slowly faded and his hand fell to his side. The car was gone. Shigure glanced up at Yuki's bedroom window and, sure enough, a boy with metallic silver hair was standing beside it, staring after the car with hopeless abandon. (Yuki…) Shigure thought sadly, a frown playing upon his face. (I wonder what will become of us now that the flower is gone…? And Kyo, despite his faults, wasn't an unwelcome visitor either….) He sighed. (It is going to get very lonely around here. Very lonely indeed.)

-...-

Staring out his window at the scene below, Yuki felt his heart cringe. Tohru…getting into the car with Kyo. Tohru…riding away in that car with Kyo. "Tohru…" Yuki whimpered hopelessly, placing a hand on the window as that little yellow taxi disappeared into the distance. In his heart Yuki had kept praying this wouldn't happen and kept denying the fact that she was leaving. But it was too hard now—there was no way to hide from the truth: she was gone. Forever.

(Why…?) Yuki asked himself desperately, hanging his head and allowing long strands of hair to cover his face. (Why did Akito have to do this?!? She was fine living here! Everything was…fine.) Yuki sank to his knees, shaking and cursing Akito with every fiber in his body. It may have seemed odd that Yuki didn't blame Kyo…but Yuki had stopped blaming Kyo a long time ago. When Tohru finally chose Kyo over Yuki, it had seemed pointless to blame him any more. With his sensitive rat hearing Yuki picked up the sounds of Shigure entering the house and shutting the front door quietly; closing them in near-silence. "Yuki." Shigure called faintly. "We have mail."

Yuki stood, a stern and silent mask sliding over his face. Stepping out of the room and down the stairs, Yuki found Shigure sitting in front of their floor table; reading a rather bulky letter with wide eyes.

"What is that?" the teen questioned.

"Oh—Yuki!" Shigure greeted, quickly stuffing the letter under the table. "There's one for you t—"

"What are you hiding?" Yuki asked, narrowing his violet eyes at the dog's obvious bluff. "I never get any mail."

"You do now." Shigure grinned, handing Yuki a small envelope. Sure enough, the name 'YUKI SOHMA' was printed in large letters on the front. Curious, Yuki swindled the letter up to his room, glad for some distraction from the loss of their most precious guest. Sitting on the edge of his bed, Yuki carefully peeled open the envelope, retrieving a piece of paper from the inside. The paper was folded in a diamond shape with the words 'OPEN HERE' embossed on one side. Lifting this strip of paper he found more writing beneath, this time printed so small Yuki had to squint to read it. 'BEWARE: OPENING THIS LETTER CAN BRING EXTREME CONSEQUENCES. IF YOU TRULY THINK YOU ARE READY FOR A LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCE, OPEN AWAY!' ("Life-changing experience"? What's that about?) Yuki wondered, unfolding the letter the rest of the way. The more he read the more of a smile formed on Yuki's face and by the end of the letter Yuki found himself laughing hysterically. It read:

"GREETINGS, YUKI SOHMA. YOU HAVE BEEN HAND-CHOSEN TO TAKE PART IN OUR NEWEST WISH PROGRAM!! IT IS A THREE-MONTH-TRIAL THAT WILL START THE DAY AFTER YOU MAKE YOUR WISHES. KEEP IN MIND THAT SINCE THIS IS A GENIE SYSTEM YOU WILL ONLY BE GRANTED THREE WISHES. CHOOSE VERY CAREFULLY!! YOU MAY EVEN SAVE CERTAIN WISHES FOR LATER OR REVOKE THE WISHES YOU DON'T LIKE ANYTIME WITHIN THE THREE-MONTH PERIOD, BUT ONCE IT'S UP…POOF! NO MORE WISHES!! ALSO KEEP IN MIND THAT SINCE YOU ARE OUR BETA TESTER OUR LEADER MAY EVEN SEE FIT TO MAKE YOUR WISHES PERMANENT!! BEST WISHES MAX."

(Wish program?!? Three-month-trial?!? This stuff is ridiculous!!) Yuki thought, clutching his stomach as it began to tighten from him laughing so hard. (Ah…I needed a good laugh.) Yuki crumpled the paper and tossed it to the floor, still chuckling to himself. "Genie system." He snorted aloud. "What _is_ that all about?" Having a sudden idea, Yuki decided he was desperate enough to try this crazy wishing thing. "Ok…three wishes right?" He asked the air. When it didn't answer him, he shook his head. (I feel so silly…) "Then…I wish I wasn't cursed anymore." He announced, wistfully thinking how nice it would be to no longer transform. For a moment Yuki opened his mouth to wish Tohru back. But wishing Tohru back would mean he'd have to wish Kyo back too, if only to still see Tohru happy. And as much as Yuki loved seeing her happy, it also pained him to know it was Kyo that made her the happiest. No, what Yuki really wanted…what he really needed… "Someone of my own to love." He voiced aloud, "Someone new, someone I've never met before. Someone who could understand my pain, but could lift it off me as well. Someone…who loves me for me. That is my second wish. The third is on hold."

Pausing a moment, Yuki was almost tempted to go see if it worked; but decided against it. (Max said the wishes wouldn't start until the day after I wished them…Oh—this is crazy, do I actually believe that stupid letter?!?) Staring out his window once more, Yuki watched as the sun dipped below the horizon, painting the sky a rosy color as it melted away. Yuki felt his eyelids growing heavy and he collapsed sideways onto his bed, his hair feathering around his face. His eyelids grew so heavy he could no longer hold them open and his consciousness began to fade as he drifted asleep to the scent of lilacs. (Funny…I don't remember there being a lilac bush around here…)

-...-

Morning reached the Sohma house silently, its master's pink robe brushing against the floor as he made his way down an empty hall. Akito, the Zodiac's god, black eyes burning a hole in the floor and shoulder-length raven hair hiding a triumphant smirk. Why was he smirking? He'd found himself a new cat. Reaching the end of the hallway, he slid a screen door out of his way to see her lying there; a broken heap at the edge of his porch. Akito's smirk widened into a smile of delight over her isolation.

"Did you sleep out here all night? You could've come inside—I would've kept you warm." He laughed mockingly at her as she shrank away from the sound of his voice. Her back was to him, her black t-shirt and jeans soaked through from sleeping outside in the rain. That wasn't to mention her hair, which was still dripping water from its short orange locks.

Akito's laughing abruptly stopped when he discovered the girl wasn't responding. His grin quickly flipped into a menacing scowl and he grabbed her by her hair, forcing her to face him. When the girl's stubborn brown eyes still avoided his gaze he shook her growling, "Look at me when I talk to you."

Her eyes turned up to look him straight on, challenging brown orbs that flashed yellow for a moment, like a cat whose eyes had just caught the morning sunlight.

"How dare you…HOW DARE YOU STILL DEFY ME YOU STUPID ANIMAL!" Akito roared, reaching for a beaded bracelet that adorned her left wrist.

"NO!" She shouted, jerking her arm away before he could remove it.

Akito's victorious smirk returned and his hand shot forward, grabbing her wrist forcefully and yanking the bracelet off.

"That's right…scream." He told her as she reverted into the true form of the cat of the Zodiac. That twisted, cursed form only the cat had to endure. "Scream at how hideous you are…truly despicable…and completely…helpless."

-...-

**DAY 1**

Yuki awoke to bright sunlight streaming in through his window to land on his bed. His sleeping figure was immersed in this sunlight; Yuki curled up on top of his covers, causing them to wrap around him like a little nest. His drowsy eyes dragged themselves open and Yuki pushed himself up with one hand, blinking away the gentle air of sleepiness. He dragged himself to the edge of the bed, slipping his feet off the side and then standing on them. He turned to his closet, searching for his school uniform. Yuki had no earthly idea why it was in a box at the bottom of the closet, but he was too half-asleep to care. Yanking stiff black pants on over his boxers and stuffing himself into the starch white shirt that completed the top of his outfit, Yuki found he actually had to stop and _think_ to remember what came next. Thinking so early in the morning wasn't exactly something Yuki excelled at. Luckily he remembered to pull on his socks and tie; although he fumbled a bit with the tie and it actually came out a bit lopsided. (Perhaps Honda-san will fix it for me…) He thought absentmindedly, yesterday's events not quite sinking in. Plus he was half-asleep. So half-asleep, in fact, that Yuki didn't even notice he wasn't in his room. He simply made his way out into the hallway and down the stairs as if nothing was different; making a quick breakfast as per usual and ignoring Shigure's snide comments about some conversation that had occurred between the dog and Ayame a few weeks ago.

Yuki finished his breakfast in a hurry, grabbed his school bag, slipped on his shoes, and was out the door and halfway to Kawai High before he realized what he was doing. Pausing in the middle of the sidewalk Yuki looked around as a sleepwalker does when first awaking to find themselves in the middle of nowhere. This was also when Yuki had a serious flashback, yesterday's events rushing through his mind. (That's right…Honda-san—Tohru is…) Yuki swallowed hard, willing himself not to finish that thought. He marched forward towards the school in silence, his eyes staring at the ground. Yuki was so lost in thought that he bumped into someone. It was rather out of character for him and he quickly apologized to the girl he'd bumped into. She told him it was alright, apologized as well, and then walked on past him. Yuki stared longingly after the girl for a moment, her long dark hair reminding him of Tohru. Still lost in memories of the girl who had brightened the Zodiac's lives, the realization of what had just happened didn't reach Yuki until he was a few yards from the school. He froze mid-step, the realization finally catching up with him: (I bumped into a normal girl…_and I didn't transform!)_

He stood dead still in the midst of people rushing off to work and school, a few giving him odd looks as they hurried about their business. (I…didn't transform…so did that wish thing work?) Yuki shook his head, quickly deciding not to bet on that yet. (I don't want to take any chances that I'm no longer cursed. I only bumped into that girl, so I can't be sure if the amount of contact would've been enough to trigger my transformation in the first place.) Yuki sighed. (And even if I am free of the curse…I'm still in the Sohma cage.) Hanging his head again, Yuki approached the school—having no idea what awaited him there.

-...-

Classroom 1-D, three seats back and next to the window was the desk of a girl who stared outside with complete ignorance to the noisy classmates around her.

"Did you hear we're getting a new student? I hope he's a cute boy!" One girl squealed.

"I know!! There aren't any cute guys in our class!" Another girl complained.

"Hey!" Several boys protested.

"Who really cares who the new kid is? It's bound to be some stuck-up smart-ass to transfer in this late in the year."

The girl beside the window perked up at the sound of her best friend's voice and lifted her head away from the window to see the person who'd just spoke come over and sit beside her.

"Mornin'" Her best friend greeted her.

"Good morning…um…Reina? What happened to your hair? It's all wet!"

The girl beside her held a strand of orange hair in front of her face, watching it drip water on the desk. "Oh. Yeah that. I slept outside."

"I'm sure you always do." One boy cut in, brushing his bleached blonde hair back. "Miharu-san, may I have a minute?" He asked the girl beside Reina.

"Sure, what is it?" She asked, not moving from her seat. Reina stifled a giggle at the boy's flushed face.

"Um…can I speak to you in private?" The boy continued, brushing back his hair again.

(Is he trying to act cool with that hair bit?) Miharu wondered. "Sorry, but can it wait? Class is about to start."

"Oh…sure." He agreed, turning and sulking his way up to his seat at the front of the room.

"Are you seriously gonna talk to that guy?" Reina questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"I have to. It's common courtesy."

"Can I deliver a 'common courtesy' punch to his face?"

Miharu laughed a little at this, her brown eyes sparkling at the mental image. "No, no, his hair routine was annoying, but not _that_ annoying."

"And what is that? The 15th one this week? I'm glad I don't have a fan club…" Reina snorted.

"Don't go there."

As the bell rang, echoing through the halls and classrooms of Kawai High, the teacher stepped in; moving to the podium at the front of classroom 1-D.

"Good morning class." She greeted them.

"Mornin' teach!" One boy called.

"Whatcha' gonna teach us today?" another asked.

"Is the new student here yet?" One of the gossiping girls questioned.

"Now, now, settle down, he should be here shortly." The teacher explained.

Several girls squealed, chanting "It's a guy!!" and several boys moaned, uttering the exact same phrase, but with remorse rather than enthusiasm.

Just as they were putting on this display the sound of footsteps rushing down the hall was heard. Miharu found herself pulling her hand through her tawny hair, fingering the white tips that trailed off the sides in a nervous fashion, and quickly stopped herself. (I'm not nervous! …Am I? It's just one new student, what harm could he bring?)

Said student then burst into the room, bending over and panting heavily, his dark, metallic gray hair falling in front of his face. "I'm sorry…I'm late…" He gasped out, looking apologetically up at the teacher.

"That's fine, it's your first day." She told him, smiling sweetly to reassure him. Instead the boy looked more confused and he glanced out at the classroom, apparently searching for a familiar face. His violet eyes paused on Reina, then on Miharu, and she felt her heart skip a beat. (Those girls were right…he's really handsome.)

"Now, Sohma-kun, where can we seat you…?" The teacher wondered aloud, looking around for an empty seat.

"SOHMA?!?" Practically the entire class cried, leaping to their feet. Everyone except Miharu, who was pretty much glued to her seat in shock. A million questions were shot at her at once, everyone demanding to know if she knew the new boy, if she'd met him somewhere, if they could have his phone number. Reina slammed her hands on the desk in front of her, silencing their interrogation and glaring around the room to keep them silent.

"I don't know what you guys are getting all worked up about! There are at least 500 people with the last name 'Sohma'—just because they have the same last name doesn't mean she knows him!! Right, Miharu?!?" Reina asked.

Miharu could only nod, grateful for her friend's defense. Her eyes were locked on the new kid's, his eyes forming a questioning 'What's going on?' look.

"Alright everyone, settle down and return to your seats." Their teacher announced. "And Reina, while I thank you for your assistance can you try to give it without damaging school property next time?"

"Sorry." Reina mumbled, sliding into her seat like everyone else in the classroom. Everyone except 'Sohma-kun' who was standing at the front of the classroom with an extremely puzzled look on his face.

"Sohma-kun, if you could sit there please?" The teacher pointed at the seat behind Reina.

Sohma-kun made his way to the seat she'd pointed out silently, slumping into it and staring at the desk so intently it almost looked like he was asking it what was going on.

Miharu glanced back at him sympathetically, but he didn't notice and she sighed. (I know I shouldn't get involved but…he is a Sohma.) She thought, ripping a sheet of paper out of her notebook and quickly jotting something down on it: _'Please don't look so worried. They're always like that over new kids, even without the last name coincidence. What's your first name? Maybe I've heard of you somewhere.' _Folding the paper she slipped it onto his desk when the teacher's back was to the class. He read it wide-eyed, then wrote a response and passed it back to her.

_'It's Yuki. We have the same last name?'_

_'Yes. Probably just a coincidence—like Reina said, there's a lot of Sohma's. I'm Miharu.'_ It was just a matter of waiting for the teacher to turn around again for Miharu to pass the note to Yuki once more.

He returned it fairly quickly and Miharu found herself reading it anxiously—this was much more interesting than a lesson on English grammar.

_'It's nice to meet you Miharu-san. And you said Reina? Is that the girl in front of me?' _Miharu giggled at his use of an honorific on paper, then wrote her response: _'Yes, that's Reina. She's the cat.'_Without thinking, Miharu passed the note to Yuki again. When she realized what she had just done Miharu jumped, ripping the paper away from Yuki. The teacher heard her jump and turned around, looking at her suspiciously.

"Is there something you'd like to share Miharu-san?" She asked.

"No ma'am." Miharu replied simply. A few people snickered at this, but their teacher returned to the lesson without a second thought. Miharu let out a quiet sigh of relief. (That was close…I just hope Yuki didn't get to finish reading that note! I almost gave away the family curse…but then again, any normal person wouldn't understand what I meant by _'She's the cat'_, right?)

Unfortunately for Miharu…Yuki was no ordinary person.

-...-

Yuki's hands remained suspended in mid-air, as if still holding the note that had been so viciously taken from him. (_'She's the cat')_ Yuki repeated the note's words in his mind. (Miharu-san obviously didn't want me to read that part…otherwise she wouldn't have grabbed the note away from me like that…but…how does she know about the curse?) Yuki wasn't quite sure what to do. He was apparently a new student at a school he'd attended for over a year, he had just found the new cat of the zodiac, and some strange girl he'd never met before nor seen in the inner house of Sohma knew about the curse. (Think, don't panic, think) Yuki told himself. (That wish thing, could this be part of that? It's crazy, but so is this situation.) Yuki put his hands down on the desk calmly, attempting to remain composed despite the fact that he felt like running out of the window the way Kyo had on his first day at school. Remembering Kyo actually caused Yuki to grin a little. (That stupid cat…I better not start turning into him. I don't want to be an idiot.) Yuki could almost see Kyo yelling at him for this thought and his smile turned into a frown of annoyance.

"Sohma-kun, do you think you could try this problem?" The teacher asked suddenly.

Yuki glanced up at the board and rattled off the answer flawlessly. Several people seemed impressed by this, including the teacher. Yuki was merely bored by it. (This is the same lesson we did yesterday.) He thought grumpily, leaning his head on his hand and pressing his elbow into the desk.

There was an hour more of torturous English grammar before the teacher finally moved on to algebra. There was an hour or so of this before the bell rang, signaling a lunch break. "Alright everyone, be back before the late bell." Their teacher told them as people rushed out the door. Most students stayed inside to question Yuki, but he stood too, making his way through the crowd and out into the hallway. (Maybe if I can find Hatsuharu he could tell me what's going on…) Spotting the cow's white and black layered hair through the crowd, Yuki pushed his way towards him, calling out, "Hatsuharu!" The teen turned around, puzzled brown eyes landing on Yuki. Finally catching up to him Yuki began to explain his situation, "I went to my class today and it was a completely different class which treated me like a new student! Do you know what's going on? Was my class moved or something?"

"I'm sorry…do I know you?" The cow interrupted.

"Do you…what?" Yuki asked disbelievingly.

"I think you have me mistaken for someone else. Sorry." Haru told him, turning and walking away through the crowd.

(_'I think you have me mistaken for someone else'?!?_ What in the world is he talking about?!? He's acting like he never met me!) Yuki thought, frozen by the cow's words and ignoring a rather large group of students that were attempting to talk to him.

"Hey! You lost or something?" Someone asked, grabbing him by the shoulder.

Yuki whirled around to see Reina, who had busted her way through the crowd to rescue him. "Um…Yeah." Yuki lied. "I have no idea where I'm supposed to be going." (It's not a complete lie.) Yuki reassured himself. (I _don't_ know what I'm supposed to do now.)

Reina flashed him a rare smile. "No worries, follow me."

Yuki followed Reina through all too familiar hallways to the outdoor 'cafeteria' where he had usually eaten with Kyo, Tohru, and Tohru's friends. She led him to what was apparently her spot and plopped down and the grass, motioning for him to join her. "Just for today, though." She told him firmly. "I'm doing you a favor since you're a new student. Be grateful."

"…Thank you." He joined her on the grass, pulling out his lunch and eating it slowly.

"So…your name's Yuki, huh?" She asked.

"Where did you hear that?"

"From Miharu."

"Ah." (That makes sense. They seem like good friends, otherwise Reina wouldn't have stood up for Miharu-san like she did.) Yuki mused, taking a bite out of his sandwich.

"So did you just move here?"

Yuki nearly choked on his sandwich. "N-Not exactly." He coughed out, taking a quick sip of juice to get the food down his throat.

"Then where do you live?"

"You're awfully curious for someone who says she wants nothing to do with me." Yuki pointed out.

Reina shrugged. "Just getting all the facts."

Yuki looked questioningly at her, but she wouldn't say anymore. He sighed, staring off at the spot where he usually ate lunch with Tohru. Her friends were sitting there, Uo making violent gestures in the air and Hana merely nodding. When Hana turned to see Yuki staring, however, he quickly looked away. (She's far too perceptive…) Yuki thought nervously, shivering slightly.

"Say, Yuki…?" Reina interrupted, watching him suspiciously.

"Yes?" Yuki replied.

"…What were you asking Hatsuharu?"

Yuki was about to ask how she knew Hatsuharu when someone came up and interrupted him.

"Hey Reina!! Oh, and Yuki-kun too?" Miharu greeted, looking a bit surprised to see Yuki.

"Yeah, he looked lost so I told him he could sit with us today." Reina explained.

"You never said anything about Miharu-san joining us." Yuki commented.

Miharu looked from a frustrated Reina to a passive Yuki and back again. "Oh-ho, what is this?" She asked, grinning devilishly, "Something going on here Reina?"

"Shut up and eat your lunch." Reina snapped, tossing a bag at Miharu. Yuki hadn't realized Reina was sitting by Miharu's things until she did so.

"Hmm." Was Miharu's simple reply as she joined them, sitting down on the grass and opening her bag to fish out her lunch.

"So where did you run off to?" Reina asked.

"Oh, to talk to that guy."

"And…?"

"And what? He likes me because I'm pretty so I told him to buzz off." Miharu explained plainly, taking a bite out of her sandwich.

"But you are pretty." Yuki told her, not understanding what was wrong with that.

Miharu almost choked on her food, turning a beet red. "Oh…um…thank you." She muttered, sipping her juice.

"…I don't understand." Yuki told Reina, looking to the orange-haired girl for some sort of explanation.

"You're a _guy_. You wouldn't understand." Reina snorted, tossing her wadded up trash in a nearby trashcan.

"Reina, that's not very nice." Miharu protested.

Reina merely grunted.

-...-

The rest of the day went on as oddly as the beginning of it, but a little more calmly. Yuki gave up trying to figure out what was going on and just went with it. He found himself lying a lot to avoid getting himself in more trouble than he already was in. By the end of the day he was pretty much exhausted, and glad he was going home to a quiet house.

…Or so he thought.

"Yuki-kun, is your house this way too?" Miharu asked as they walked down the sidewalk. He'd somehow wound up walking home with her—Reina had remained at the school, claiming she had something to take care of.

"Mm-hmm." Yuki agreed absentmindedly, still wondering how Miharu knew about the Zodiac curse and hoping she didn't know about his part in it.

They walked on further in silence, Miharu growing more and more anxious as they grew closer to Shigure's house. Both he and Miharu stopped in front of it, speaking at the same time: "Well, this is my house so…"

Yuki froze. "You live here?" He asked, surprised.

"_You_ live here?" Miharu asked, equally surprised.

They both stood and stared at each other as the actual owner of the house, Shigure, came trotting out to greet them. "Ah, Yuki, Miharu, welcome home! I assume you've already met each other?" Yuki nodded as if in a trance.

"Shigure…what's going on?" Miharu asked slowly. "Yuki-kun says he lives here…"

"That he does. He is my cousin after all." Shigure told her, nodding to himself.

"Just how many cousins do you _have_?" Miharu asked him in exasperation.

Shigure merely laughed and waved her question away. "Now, now, now is not the time; come on in you two. I have a lot to explain…to Yuki, at least."

"You know what's going on?" Yuki asked, snapping out of his trance.

"That I do, Yuki, that I do."

_A/N: Dun-dun-dun, another one bites the dust... chapter, I mean. I've been writing chapters so much it makes my head spin... In any case, please give me your opinions. Constructive Criticism is highly appreciated and flamers will be shot down. That is all._


End file.
